While another part of Fort Lauderdale drowned under a sea of poop and raw sewage, a company represented by one of Mayor Dean Trantalis’ key campaign advisers landed deals rebuilding the City of Fort Lauderdale police station and (coming soon?) parks. Last week, the multinational corporation AECOM was awarded a contract to serve as consultant to the construction of a new police headquarters. The request from the City stated, “The services required may include, but not be limited to, the development of space needs (program verification of existing prior space study), full construction documents and specifications including a full site development plan, permitting and construction administration, demolition of all existing structures, (the radio tower may have the possibility of remaining at its present location or need to be redesigned to another area on the site).” And the news gets better for AECOM.

In December 2019, three out of five city officials reviewing proposals for “Parks Bond And Master Plan Implementation Services” ranked AECOM first. The other two officials ranked AECOM second. How does AECOM keeping landing these huge City of Fort Lauderdale projects?

Surely, the AECOM proposals and references must be first class. The company’s recent work on the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport is widely praised. But it cannot hurt to have a member of Mayor Trantalis’ campaign team lobbying the City on your behalf.

Earlier this month, REDBROWARD exposed the lobbying done by key members of Trantalis’ campaign team as well as advisers to Commissioner Steven Glassman, Commissioner Heather Moraitis and Commissioner Ben Sorensen.

In June 2019, a group, headed by AECOM, presented unsolicited bid to build a shared Broward County/City Of Fort Lauderdale Government campus by public private partnership (P3). According to the Sun-Sentinel, County and City officials agreed to a staff review of the AECOM proposal even though the public was not allowed to view the details of the bid.

At a December 2019 meeting of County and City officials, details of the AECOM were still secret. “Without describing the unsolicited bid in detail, AECOM Vice President Mark Blanchard told commissioners that the company’s proposal would ‘accommodate everything you need.‘”

According to published reports, Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis favored the hiring of a design consultant before moving forward with the AECOM proposal. “We don’t know what we don’t know,” Trantalis said. [AECOM] “may try to sell us a Cadillac, and we may only need a Chevrolet.”

After hiring a consultant, Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Ben Sorensen chimed in on the proposal. “Sorenson suggested another joint meeting of city and county commissioners in early January to amend an intra-local agreement prohibiting them from considering confidential details of the unsolicited AECOM proposal.”

City of Fort Lauderdale lobbyist meeting logs show representatives of AECOM and its partners first met with Mayor Dean Trantalis one month after they presented their proposal to build the Joint Government Center Campus. On July 29, 2019 Mayor Dean Trantalis met with Fengate Capital lobbyist Eric Johnson (of Johnson Strategies) at Fort Lauderdale City Hall. These same records show Eric Johnson registered as the Fengate Capital lobbyist on July 26, 2019.

On January 6, 2020, Johnson and other AECOM lobbyists met with Dean Trantalis and Commissioner Steven M. Glassman at City Hall.

Two days later, Eric Johnson and the AECOM team met at City Hall to discuss the Joint Government Center Campus with Commissioner Ben Sorensen. City records show Eric Johnson registered as the AECOM lobbyist on December 3, 2019.

City of Fort Lauderdale campaign records show on January 16, 2020, Ben Sorensen’s campaign paid $5,000 to Johnson Strategies for consulting services.

Sorensen is not the only Fort Lauderdale official with Eric Johnson on his campaign team.

DEAN TRANTALIS’ POSEIDON ADVENTURE

Earlier this month, REDBROWARD revealed Mayor Dean Trantalis’ campaign advisers were lobbying on behalf of not one but two companies seeking a public private partnership (P3) to replace a Fort Lauderdale water treatment plant.

City records show Eric Johnson, Stephanie Toothaker and James Blake MacDiarmid are registered lobbyists for Poseidon Water. MacDiarmid, the campaign consultant for Commissioner Heather Moraitis, claims to be an adviser to Mayor Dean Trantalis, Steven Glassman and Ben Sorensen.

Days after REDBROWARD revealed their roles in the Poseidon bid, the trio registered as lobbyists for another company.

On Friday February 21, 2020, Stephanie Toothaker, Eric Johnson and James Blake MacDiarmid registered as lobbyists for Fort Lauderdale Water LLC at 461 From Road, Suite 400 in Paramus, New Jersey.

On February 19, 2020, Eric Johnson of Johnson Strategies registered as a lobbyist for Suez at 461 From Road Suite 400 in Paramus, New Jersey. On February 21st, Toothaker also registered as a lobbyist for Suez.

Perhaps Fort Lauderdale residents should hire Johnson, Toothaker and MacDiarmid to lobby on their behalf to get the sewers fixed?